Armie Hammer Seen in L.A. During Rare Public Appearance 5 Years After Career-Derailing Scandal

NEED TO KNOW

• Armie Hammer was photographed in West Hollywood on May 27, marking a rare public appearance after years out of the spotlight

• The actor faced career fallout in 2021 following allegations of abuse and cannibalistic fantasies, which he has denied

• Hammer recently returned to Los Angeles and has resumed his acting career

Armie Hammer was photographed in Los Angeles this week — marking a rare public sighting for the actor, who stepped away from the spotlight five years ago after numerous career-derailing controversies.

Hammer, 39, was spotted out and about in West Hollywood, Calif., on Wednesday, May 27. He was walking solo, wearing athletic clothes and a baseball cap. Hammer also sported a mustache.

The Call Me by Your Name star recently returned to living in Los Angeles in 2024. Last year, he resumed work again after he was shunned by Hollywood following a series of allegations of physical and sexual abuse made against him in 2021.

Hammer split from his wife, Elizabeth Chambers, in July 2020, and six months later, the first allegations surfaced. One woman accused Hammer of rape, and other women claimed he shared violent, cannibalistic fantasies with them.

In January 2021, an Instagram account named House of Effie posted messages allegedly shared by the actor, displaying BDSM and cannibalistic fantasies. The following day, Hammer announced he was stepping away from shooting Lionsgate’s Shotgun Wedding opposite Jennifer Lopez.

“I’m not responding to these bulls— claims but in light of the vicious and spurious online attacks against me, I cannot in good conscience now leave my children for 4 months to shoot a film in the Dominican Republic,” he said in a statement obtained by PEOPLE at the time. “Lionsgate is supporting me in this and I’m grateful to them for that.”

Later the same month, one of Hammer’s ex-girlfriends came forward and alleged to Page Six “their romance was like dating a wannabe Hannibal Lecter.” Hammer subsequently exited another project, The Offer.

In March 2021, the owner of the House of Effie account made additional allegations against Hammer, accusing the actor of allegedly raping and abusing her during their on-and-off four-year affair, which took place during his marriage to Chambers, 43.

Hammer previously admitted to cheating on Chambers, but denied any wrongdoing. He and Chambers have since continued to co-parent their two kids: daughter Harper, 11, and son Ford, 9.

The actor’s lawyer, Andrew Brettler, claimed that all of Hammer’s relationships and sexual experiences have been consensual.

In a statement previously provided to PEOPLE, Brettler denied the rape allegation and maintained that Hammer’s relationship with Effie was “completely consensual, discussed and agreed upon in advance, and mutually participatory.”

The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) also investigated Hammer for sexual assault, but ultimately he was not charged.

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In the wake of the 2021 allegations, Hammer was dropped from all of his remaining projects, and he retreated from the spotlight.

In recent years, Hammer has spoken out during several media appearances. He has even started his own podcast, The Armie HammerTime Podcast.

In June 2024, the actor reflected on the Painful Lessons podcast about how the accusations against him led to his “career death” and him hitting “rock bottom.”

“It killed me. It killed my ego. It killed all the people around me that I thought were my friends that weren’t,” Hammer said at the time. “All of those people in a flash went away, but the buildings were still standing. I’m still here. I still have my health, and I’m really grateful for that.”

While appearing on the Your Mom’s House podcast in January 2025, Hammer said he went “full panic mode” when the scandal first broke.

“There was the mask that I didn’t really identify with, but everyone thought was me, that that became sort of like my safety net and identity,” he explained. “And then when that gets shattered and everyone goes, ‘We no longer like this guy. We f—ing hate him.’ ”

Hammer recently returned to acting through the Western movie Frontier Crucible, which was released in late 2025. It marked his first film credit since 2022’s Death on the Nile.

If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual abuse, text “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.

Read the original article on People